Hello! Today I have two videos for you… and they are a bit different. As some of you may know from my posts on Instagram, I’m a big fan of succulents… so I’m excited that there are now succulent stamps available! The first video shows how to create some fun succulent gift tags using some colored ink, pencils and gamsol. The second video shows how I (very simply) plant and care for succulent plants. They are addictive!

I so very much love filling my craft room with small and sweet succulents (and cactus). They are gorgeous, inexpensive and easy to care for. Since I am a crafty blog, let’s first chat about the succulent gift tags I created…

[All supplies are linked to multiple sources in the thumbnails at the end of this post. To watch the video in HD on YouTube, click HERE.]

Now… time for info on the succulents themselves! Please know that I am NOT an expert on this. Not at all. I don’t really have the time to be an expert, but have found great luck by keeping it simple. And my guess is you are all limited on time… so simple would be best for you too. Yes, I have lost a few succulents along the way. But overall, my method of planting and caring for succulents (and cactus) has worked really well for me.

[All supplies are linked in the thumbnails at the end of this post. To watch the video in HD on YouTube, click HERE.]

Here is really all there is to it:

Pick a container. — Any container! It really is best to use one with a hole in the bottom. However, I tend to ignore this rule. (The small pots I used in this video are no longer available, but you can find similar things.)

Get some good soil. — I use an organic cactus soil. It works like a charm! However, in the past I have used a non-organic option that is very inexpensive. (Half the cost, twice the amount!) Both work well.

Get some succulents or cactus. — I get mine at local florist shops, Home Depot, Lowes or on Etsy. Get whatever appeals to you. Have fun with it!

Water with ice. — I find it best to water my plants with an ice cube once every two weeks. Ice slowly melts and prevents the plants from being “flooded.” These guys don’t need much water at all! I put a timer on my calendar to remind me to water them.

Sunlight! — Theses guys LOVE sunlight. Put them near windows!

Again – you can Google search to get more (and better) info. But if you want to keep it simple… there you have it.

Small planted succulents make a great gift for friends, teachers, etc. I hope this is helpful!

GOOD NEWS

Also, in the video, I mentioned the Copic Markers for Card Makers. Class has started (but you can easily join in anytime – now or 10 years from now) and people seem to really be happy! You can find info HERE.

Hello! I have teamed up with my dear friend Melanie Bauer from Melanie Makes for another special treat. Melanie came up with a yummy Strawberry Banana Muffin recipe… and I came up with a simple yet cute packaging for it. Check out my video to see how to use a regular sandwich bag along with a free download to make a fun treat for a mom!

Mother’s Day isn’t only about celebrating your own momma. It can also be about celebrating all the ladies in your life that work hard to raise good kiddos. Friends. Aunts. Teachers. Grandmas. Why not tell these folks how amazing they are? After all, it is important for us to encourage and lift each other. So I decided to come up with a fun little treat that I could give to several ladies in my life that I love and respect. Just to remind them what awesome mommas they are.

In the video I show how to take a simple sandwich bag and transform it into a bag perfect to hold a muffin or cupcake. (You could also purchase baggies that are intended for this purpose at Target, etc. but I didn’t have any on hand.) So easy to do!

All you have to do is score and cut and you are good to go! I used a fun die from Simon Says Stamp to create the flowers. However, you could easily create your own with any embellishments you may have. You could even create your own flowers from circle punches. (Just cut slits in along the edge of a punched circle for a funky flower. For the leaves, just punch a circle then put the circle back in the punch but offset… creating a leaf shape.)

THIS download could also be used to create mini cards or sentiments for regular cards. You could also use the basic design for occasions throughout the year… just stamp any sentiment.

The basket is quick and easy to make and can be adjusted to make baskets of other sizes. The basket I made works great for any mini loaf treat – you could even do mini pumpkin breads, etc. It would even be great to hold Easter candy! The video also shows how to easily make a large paper bow. This is a great way to save money… instead of buying lots of ribbons.

I thought Melanie’s fabulous Mini Mint Chocolate Chip Whoopie Pie would be fun with a felt 4 leaf clover tag sticking out the top. It was very easy to make! I have a free download here for you. In the file, you will see a pattern to cut the shamrock petals and also the “so very lucky to have you” tags. Easy peasy! (Just download THIS and print and you are ready to go!)

These card boxes are so fast and easy to make! I used the We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board… which is intended for creating envelopes of any size. However, I used it to make boxes! The video shows how to make a box for A2 cards (4 1/4″ x 5 1/2″) and envelopes and also for 4-bar cards (3 1/2″ x 4 7/8″) and envelopes.

So – yes – I know this is last minute. But I shared this on Instagram and got hit with a lot of emails. So I thought I would take some quick pictures and share here the Halloween Treat Bags I am making for Colin’s class.

These bags are so very easy to make and you really don’t need many supplies. For the eyes and dots on the bags, I used various sizes of circle punches or circle dies (from 1″ to 2.5″). I bought some inexpensive pom poms for each nose and cut quick and sloppy triangles for the ears and teeth. After printing the child’s name on red cardstock, I trimmed and rolled the end around a pencil to make a silly twisted tongue.

Good old fashion brown paper bags work perfect for this. I folded the top over and adhered all the pieces with strong Glossy Accents. (The teeth and tongue are adhered to the back of the folded flap. I didn’t tape the bags closed – just left them folded over.)

You could fill this bag with candy, cookies or any other typical treat. But me – being the mean mom I am, lol – decided to skip the sugar and plastic toys for something more artsy and fun…

We decided to print several and cut them into 2.5×3.5″ pieces for the notebook. I also made a personalized cover page in Photoshop, too. (“Journal” is a big word in their class, so Colin wanted to include it.) After we were done, we used our Cropodile to punch a hole in the top and used a ring to keep them together. (You can get these at office supply stores.) Oh – and google eyes are best added with Studio Matte Medium.

Now this all may seem very over-the-top. But honestly? I held myself back. I tend to go overboard on this stuff. But once I see the smiles on the kid’s faces? It will be worth the work. (And thanks to my dear friend and fellow homeroom mom Kami who helped to put these together! The bags only took about 1.5 hours in total.)

The sweet folks at Ranger asked me to be part of their Great Pumpkin Challenge. We all started with a plain pumpkin and used Ranger goodies to turn it into a fall decorative piece. Here’s mine…

Here’s the scoop: I tore lots of strips of Sticky Back Canvas. White heat embossed Hero Arts images all over the strips. Painted them with Distress Inks. And sprayed the living daylights out of them with Perfect Pearl Mist. And thanks to the Sticky Back Canvas, they stick right on easily. For the “M” I just printed it and traced it onto canvas. Fun…

Be sure to head over the the Ranger blog all this week. They will be showcasing several decorated pumpkins by other artists each day. You can find them HERE.

I used my all-time favorite patterned papers for this garland – the Bo Bunny Double Dot papers. There are so many great colors and they are tone-on-tone. Love love love. I hoard them.

I added the letters with my Silhouette. I tell ya – I am amazed how much use I have gotten out of that machine…

Couldn’t get a great picture of the whole garland, but it says “COLIN ROCKS.” (A little something to tell him how proud I am that he did so great on his first day of Kindergarten!) This project is so easy with the Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher.